Illusions of Desire
by ViolinFire14
Summary: Minerva is wandering the long corridors of Hogwarts when she comes across a magical object. This magical object has the potential to cause damage, or change her life forever. What is this object? And what does Albus have to do with it?


**A/N: Hey guys. This was an assingment which I chose to do. I hope you all enjoy it. I certainly did when writing it. Well, enjoy!**

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><p>Very few know of the Mirror of Erised. It lies within a school known as Hogwarts. Those who have encountered it, have either come back to tell the tale, or have never returned from the illusions of their deepest desires.<p>

The mirror itself, is a danger to the human mind. It will reveal a desire you hold buried within. When that desire surfaces as you stare into the mirror, it looks real. You can feel that person, or object as if it's there in the room with you. If you turn to look around you, it barely registers that nothing is there when you cast your gaze back towards the dangerous mirror.

Only those who have been strong enough to refrain from giving in to the desires before them, have come back from those traumatic experiences.

One day, it happened. Someone very powerful saw the mirror. It was a simple accident...

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On a dark evening, one of Hogwarts' professors was completing their evening round of searching for mischievous pupils, who could be wandering around after curfew. The halls were very quiet. Her emerald eyes glimmered in the candlelight as she walked through the long corridors. Her robes billowed out behind her, as she walked a fairly brisk pace.

She checked room after empty room, making sure that nobody was hiding anywhere.

After what felt like hours of walking endlessly, she came across one room in particular that captivated her interest. The door had grand carvings of old patterns on the front. The golden handle gleamed a little more than the others. She had never seen this door before. After all of her years of teaching here at Hogwarts, there was nothing quite so fascinating.

Her hand reached out slowly, and touched the cool metallic of the small handle. Of course like many others, she was only curious, and unaware of what danger lurked behind the door. She twisted it, and with one gentle push, the door opened without hesitation. She strode inside.

In the middle of the room, there stood the three grand, stone pillars. The room was of a midnight blue, with only the moonlight shining brightly, giving some light to see. There was a mirror, standing behind the three pillars.

She slowly walked up to it, her footsteps echoing off the cold, stone walls. She looked closely at the detail. It had a copper frame, which shone where the light hit it. The top was shaped into a pointed arch. She looked closer to the mirror, and spotted engravings in the arch. It said, erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on woshi. She had no idea what it meant.

When she finally looked at the glistening glass, she saw mist swirling and her own reflection. However, the image soon changed. The mist danced in chaotic patterns, and what she saw, shocked her.

A man stood beside her, smiling happily at her. He had a long grey beard, and sapphire eyes which twinkled. His arm snaked out to wrap around her waist. As she watched, she felt the touch and jerked away. She frantically looked around her, but saw no-one standing beside her. When she looked again, the image reappeared, and this time, she watched as if she was in a trance. She became oblivious to the fact that this was only a mirror, oblivious to the room around her.

She leaned closer to the glass, with the man of her dreams watching her happily. She saw the way he looked at her when they faced one another. They both looked deeply in love. The image faded, only to change into something else.

She saw herself with a small child in her arms. He was there. He came up behind her, to hold her from behind in a warm embrace. She felt safe, over-joyed, and comforted by his presence.

Minerva stood there in a deep trance. She had already been standing there for hours watching the scenes of her inner most desires unfold. Her strength was soon declining. Her mind was getting weaker. Her sanity was slipping from her strong grasp. She was starting to feel very, very upset, even though she was oblivious. Rage started building inside her.

She drew her wand from her pocket. She cast a spell which catapulted towards the mirror. Time seemed to slow down. The glowing colour of the spell collided with the mirror. Shards of shimmering glass burst into the air. The shards were all sorts of sizes. She broke from her trance the instant the glass broke, and attempted to shield herself from the fragments coming towards her.

She braced herself, and ducked down. The shards fell around her, but a few collided into her. One buried into her side from the sheer force of the powerful spell. Another had scraped her arm, which ripped the material of her sleeve, causing blood to soak through the surrounding material. A third shard has just missed lodging into her leg, only leaving it with a small surface cut.

She trembled in pain. Her shaking hands came up to the larger shard embedded in her side. It was too deep to pull out safely. Pain filled her senses. It intensified.

The pain soon became too much. Her vision blurred. Her world turned to darkness.

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><p>It was Filch who found her in the early hours of the morning. Shattered glass surrounded her. A small pool of blood had leaked onto the floor close to her. He immediately rushed to tell Professor Dumbledore.<p>

Dumbledore ran through the many halls of Hogwarts. He urged Filch to hurry since he was leading away. Panic flooded through Albus the moment Filch had described what he saw. So, he ran. He only hoped that it wasn't too late.

He burst through the door, and frantically searched for the woman he deeply cared for. He saw her lifeless form lying there on the stone floor. He ran over to her. He turned her over and touched her wrist. He felt a faint pulse, but she was very cold.

He carefully lifted her into his strong arms, and carried her to the hospital wing. The moment he entered, Madame Pomfrey came to his side, bombarding him with many questions as to what had happened. He didn't know. All he knew was that Filch had found her.

Poppy, having quickly identified the issues, set to work in healing Minerva of her cuts, and removing the shard.

Minerva awoke to a blinding light. Her body felt heavy, and her mind felt clouded. When she tried to sit up, a hand pushed her back down onto the bed. Her eyes looked to the direction of where the mysterious hand had come from. It was Albus.

He looked at her with a gaze full of concern. She soon found that he was also holding her hand.

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><p>"Hello, my dear. What happened last night?"<p>

"I-I. I can't remember," she whispered quietly.

"Filch came to me. He showed me where you were. Minerva. You were hurt badly. Shards of glass were surrounding you when I saw you," he said softly.

When he said this, images of the night's events came rushing back to her. She remembered completing her rounds, seeing her desires unfold, and feeling the overwhelming sensation of sadness consume her.

She felt a hand brushing her face, wiping tears away. She hadn't realised she had been crying. He pulled her into a secure embrace, and attempted to soothe her. He stroked her back reassuringly, and soon she was calm.

"What's the matter, my dear?" He asked her gently.

"Albus...Can we talk about this somewhere else? It's...personal." Inwardly, she was starting to panic. How on earth was she going to tell him of what she saw?

"Of course. I'll just go and get Poppy, so that she can let you out."

The walk up to his quarters was full of silence. Neither talked to the other. The silence gave Minerva a chance to gather her thoughts over the previous night's events. The only words spoken were the words that would allow them to enter his quarters.

He led her over to the sofa when the door closed. They sat, side by side, but faced one another. Once settled, Albus began the conversation which Minerva was dreading.

"My dear, what happened last night?"

"I was completing my rounds of looking for anyone out after curfew. It was fine, until..." She trailed off, uncertain of how best to explain to Albus of what she saw.

"Minerva, I can't help you unless you tell me what happened."

"Albus, I. You see, I saw something last night in that room. I saw things that I have kept hidden all this time. It broke me, seeing those things."

He looked at her, knowing exactly what the mirror was. It was the Mirror of Erised. He had come across it once. He nearly wasted away in front of it. He had seen his family, alive and well. They were smiling at him, as if no darkness existed in this world.

"My dear. Let me tell you something. I once came across that mirror. It's known to few as the Mirror of Desire. It shows your inner most desires, not just your reflection. It's very dangerous. Men have wasted away in front of that mirror, wishing they could have what they saw," he said sadly.

"Albus."

"Yes, my dear?"

This was the only way she was going to get passed this. She was going to reveal a secret which she had held for all this time.

"I-I...I love you..." she merely whispered.

Shocked didn't seem like a strong enough word to him. He just couldn't believe it. She loved him? She _loved_ him? When he didn't respond, Minerva began to fear the worst.

She got up to leave, her eyes lined with tears. When she turned, a hand grasped her wrist, causing her to look at him.

A deep caring shone in his eyes, not anger. He stood too, and stepped closer to her trembling body. He looked right into her eyes, by titling her chin towards his.

"Minerva, my dear. I had no idea that you felt that way. I thought I was the only one who felt that way. What I'm trying to say is, I love you, Minerva McGonagall, and I have for a very long time," he said softly.

She gazed at him, with her eyes filled with years of pent up love. He gazed at her, with a strong love shining in them. He wiped away a few stray tears that had fallen.

He leaned in towards her, closing the gap between them. His lips brushed hers lightly, as if asking for permission to go further. She let him. She allowed their lips to lock together. The kiss was delicate, soft, and full of promise. It reassured her that he was finally hers, and she his. It promised them of a brighter future together, full of love and hope. And a future that they would always share together.

**The End**


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